An Arizona judge says the state must proceed with allowing creation of dispensaries authorized by its voter-approved medical marijuana law, a step that may remove a major impediment to full implementation.

It’s been more than a year since Arizona voters narrowly approved a statewide medical marijuana program, but the legal struggle over implementing the new law is only now working its way through federal court. And it doesn’t look like the issue will be settled any time soon.

A recent letter intended to clarify the federal government’s policies on prosecuting medical marijuana cases won’t put an end to the state’s lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice, Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne said July 6.

While the U.S. Department of Justice is imminently expected to release a statement clarifying their stance toward medical marijuana, Attorney General Tom Horne said Wednesday that if the federal government’s 2009 position is reiterated in the awaited clarification, the lawsuit he and Gov. Jan Brewer filed in federal court late last month challenging the legality of Arizona’s new medical marijuana program could be unnecessary.